TOLEDO, Ohio — Men's health awareness is about encouraging men to take care of their bodies by eating right, exercising and working to prevent disease.
June is National Men’s Health Month and aims to spread word of preventable health problems and encourage early detection and treatment of diseases including cancer, heart disease, and depression.
According to the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, men in the U.S., on average, die five years earlier than women.
According to Centers for Disease Control and Prevention data from 1999 to 2020, men also die at higher rates from the three leading causes of death: heart disease, cancer and COVID-19.
Dr. Jeffrey Swartz, a family medicine physician with Mercy Health, is asking men to take control of their health and for families to teach young boys healthy habits throughout childhood. He recommends starting to get regular health screenings sooner rather than later.
“We always said that 40 (years old) is kind of that magic number for middle-age where we start to see things. I kind of like to start earlier and do an annual physical at 30 or so. many young professionals have developed some bad habits and if you can get those corrected it leads to a longer life," Swartz said.
June 17 is National Wear BLUE Day in support of men's health awareness.
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